Wheee

Wheee

9x5 inches

Gouache and coloured pencil on gesso primed ply

This is my entry for the annual Illustrators Australia exhibition, where illustrators are provided with a 9x5 inch piece of ply and given a theme for which they can paint or draw an illustration. This year's theme was 'Rapture', which I thought was such a lovely theme, immediately conjuring up happy images. I had lots of fun with this little guy and I hope he puts a smile on your face!!! :)

A Kiss for Koala

A Kiss for Koala

8x10 inches

Coloured Pencil on drafting film, with a digital background

You never can tell where life takes you. After six months of having no illustration enquiries, out of the blue, I had three in one week which has meant a busy couple of weeks. I spent the first week working on an illustration for a cider ad, with a donkey in an apple orchard - all went smoothly and the client was happy, so I was thrilled to bits.

I was also contacted by a publisher wanting to know if I'd be interested in illustrating a children's picture book!!! This was a sample illustration that I completed for them, based on their brief. I've learnt not to get too excited when these opportunities come along (in case they don't pan out) - just take it a step at a time and hope for the best!!!

Lilac Allure

Lilac Allure

8x10 inches

Underpainted with acrylics, followed by oils on Gessobord

More experimenting with oils on Gessobord and as mentioned above, this time I underpainted with acrylics to speed up the process which seemed to work well. Without doubt drawing and painting eyes has always been my favourite subject - they are so emotive and tell their own story. I also find the human face a fascinating canvas in it's own right and have a string of ideas that I would like to paint, using faces, and in particular eyes as the initial focus.

Head of the Harem

Head of the Harem

8x10 inches

Acrylics and Oils on Gessobord

Another week filled with ups and downs and pieces going in the bin. In an earlier post, I mentioned that I had bought some Gessobord and also some Speedball Mona Lisa Gesso Boards which were about 1/3 of the price of the Gessobord. The Speedball boards, whilst they are called Gesso board, really don't have the feel of gesso at all. They are extremely slick, in a different way to Claybord, and actually feel more like laminated board. Whilst the labelling states they are suitable for a range of media, including oils, acrylics, watercolours, coloured pencils etc., I personally didn't find this to be the case. Watermedia bubbles up, coloured pencils slide off, and even the oil painting I got half way through started to peel away.

This painting was done on the gessobord and this surface is a joy to work with - enough tooth for the paint to adhere well, but smooth enough for lovely detail. This gorgeous rooster posed for us a few years ago at our local wildlife park and was just the subject for a little more experimentation with oils, which I have to say I'm really loving. The only down side, of course, is the length of time it takes for the paint to dry, so even though I finished this fellow earlier in the week, I couldn't really scan him for a few days.

Time for a clear out!!!

With a large family and a relatively small house, the time has come to clear some space, and so I have decided to sell off some of my earlier works on ebay, to make way for more creative endeavours. Most of these artworks have a starting price of .99 cents, and whilst I sincerely hope they sell for a bit more for than that, this is a one off opportunity to get some originals at a bargain price. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be placing more artworks on ebay, so if interested, please keep an eye out. Thanking you and have a great week :)

Little Garden Nymph

Little Garden Nymph

8x10 inch

Oils on Gessobord

Well since my last post, I'm sad to say I think the Claybord got the better of me after two more pieces ended up in the bin. So I moved onto the Gessobord and dusted off the water mixable oils, which have been sitting idol for quite a while now, to see how I fared with this board. I have to say I'm a bit more comfortable with this board than the Claybord, and so have ordered a whole heap more from the US. Within Australia, an 8x10 inch Gessobord retails for over $11 each, whereas in the States the average price is $4.50 USD. I've also ordered some of the Mona Lisa Gesso boards by Speedball which are only $1.70 for the same size and wondered if anyone has had experience with this board.

Full of Mirth

Full of Mirth

8x10 inch

Gouache, coloured pencil and scratch art on Claybord

I must apologise, as I have been quite neglectful with my blogging and internet sharing of late. I have been doing a bit of experimenting, much of which has not been successful and ended up in the rubbish bin. My husband Steve and I went into town (Sydney) last week to see Mary Poppins at the theatre, and whilst in town I took the opportunity to explore one of our largest art stores and the only Australian supplier of Ampersand products and so purchased some Claybord to play with. I have only tried this board once or twice before, without a great deal of success, but it has such a wonderful smooth surface, allowing for very fine details that I wanted to explore this product again to see if I could master it. The only drawback is the slickness of the surface, which makes it a little more challenging. In the past, I tried acrylics on the claybord, and can't say I was thrilled with the results, however, I know many artists produce amazing paintings, using this combination. I like the gouche better on this surface, as it adheres quite well, although will lift off if subsequent layers are too wet, and gives a more opaque colour laydown. The coloured pencils also seemed to work well over the gouache.